Travel plans for the fall are underway with time in Lazio and Amalfi booked. Planning for the full time frame is underway.

We will start our fall travels returning to Castel Cellesi and tour the Lazio area near Lake Bolsena. From our time in this area during out 2021 visit, we found there is lots to explore and we found staying here very relaxing.

From Castel Cellesi we will travel to the Amalfi Coast and spend a week at the Hotel San Michele, located just outside of Ravello and Amalfi. Fingers are crossed for a fun group event to take shape. COVID wiped our the plans to meet in 2020 and 2021 plans, but 2022 is looking good! The hotel is so charming and we have stayed there numerous times, it is like returning to family.

Naples and Rome are also in the works.

Casa Castel Cellesi

Castel Cellesi

Today the small village has a population of 200. The village does not sit on a road that continues to other locations, but at the end of its own road. It is so quiet and peaceful. But at one time this was a much busier location.

Castel Cellesi was an enclosed square of small farm houses which surrounded a larger open space accessible through two main gates known as the “Upper Gate” and the “Lower Gate.” The Church and the Palace of Count Girolamo Cellesi were in the center of the village. As more farmers came, the village spread out below the lower gate. The buildings are are low as Count Cellessi decreed none could be higher than the second floor of his palace.

In the oid centre square is the Parish Church dedicated to Saint Girolamo (1664). The most important building is up on the hill outside the walls. It had held Holy Relics. Until the end of the 19th Century it was a destination for pilgrims. Even today it is one of the most important sites on the itinerary “Shrines of the Holy Sepulchre in Europe.”

Most of the buildings inside the walls are relatively plain. I liked that each is painted a bright colour. There is a three store building with balconies that stands out. It is the Palazzetto di Marmo, built in 1906 by a roman marmorario who moved to Castel Cellesi. The building was acquired by its current owners in 2013, updated and now operates as a beautiful hotel.

Casa Castel Cellesi